Quick and Easy Mexican Rice Recipe with Salad

In my country the staple food is rice. So, I have tried most types of rice dishes. Be it Chinese fried rice, Indian rice and curry, pakistan biryani, Arabian kabsa, Indonesian nasigoreng the list goes on. This is because I am curious to know the tastes of different lands. I am sure you too will love to taste food from restaurants around the world.

What don't we like about Mexican food! Their salsa, tortillas, cheese, salads and......... rice, are mouthwatering. So here is an article on MEXICAN RICE. I love the sweetness and the spice in this recipe. (my family's level of spice consumption is very high) I also love the crunchy vegetables used in this.

At the end of this article i have posted a recipe for 'Aubergine and spinach salad'. I think most of you haven't tried it, so lets enjoy.

Ingredients

500 g basmati rice, cooked

2 tbsp. cooking oil

1 tsp. ginger, paste

1 tsp. garlic, paste

2 medium potatoes, cut like french fries

2 medium carrots, julienne

1/2 cup vinegar

1/2 cup tomato sauce

1/2 cup soya sauce

2 tbsp. barbecue seasoning (I use shan tikka boti)

250 g chicken, boiled and shredded

salt to taste

50 g spring onion, cut into 2"

Cut potato, carrots and spring onions into strips. Halve the shallots of the spring onion

Stir the vegetables and chicken in the sauce.

Add the spring onion last.

Instructions

Boil chicken with some salt and pepper. Shred it.

Add some oil in a pan(a wok will be easy to handle) on medium heat. Add the ginger and garlic paste and stir twice.

Add the potato. Stir and cook for a minute, add the carrot and the shallots of the spring onion.

Add tomato sauce, vinegar, masala and the soya sauce.

Add the shredded chicken and the cooked rice

Stir it twice and let the rice start to pop.

Add some salt to taste

Turn off the stove and sprinkle the spring onion on top.

We should always stir the spring onion last in any dish, to retain its green color and also for it to remain crispy. If we add the spring onion with the carrot it will turn a blackish green.

Aubergine and Spinach Salad

Ingredients

spinach

aubergine/brinjal

onions

green chili

tomato

lime juice

salt

mayonnaise or curd

Instructions

Steam the spinach for 2 minutes.

Keep a pan on fire, keep the aubergines on it and let it roast. Roast all sides by turning. Remove the skin and squash the flesh. (I have posted a step by step picture for this as this must be new for most of you)

Cut onions and tomato in half circles.

Add some green chilies.

Add some salt and lime juice to taste.

Toss all the ingredients together with some curd or mayonnaise.

I have not stated the quantity as this will depend on your family. In my family we add all the vegetables equally.

Hope you enjoyed reading this article and all the best in your kitchen.